If you want to add a list of events in your area to your campaigns, try out our *|LOCAL:EVENTS|* merge tag. The Local Events that'll populate your campaign are pulled from Eventful, an event feed aggregator.
Below is an example of the *|LOCAL:EVENTS|* merge tag in its most robust form. We'll go over each variable and show you how you can create a customized list of events. We'll also show you some simple default options for the *|LOCAL:EVENTS|* merge tag. (Triple click to highlight the entire tag.)
*|LOCAL:EVENTS[$location=Atlanta, GA, $radius=15m, $categories=art,music, $parts=title,map,address,attend,location,date,desc,share-horizontal, $count=2]|*
$location=
For the $location, choose a City, State combo or a zip code. Both of these options will allow us to set a radius around your location.
$radius=15m
Set a $radius using miles (designated by a number of miles and "m") and we will pull in events within the specified radius of your location.
$categories
$categories will allow you to show events that match your content or requirements. We'll limit what events show in your campaign to only the type of events that you choose. Some examples are music, conferences, animals, art, etc. A full list of available categories can be found at the end of this article.
$parts=
$parts will allow you to customize the layout of the events. Parts can be in any order and will display in the order that they're noted within the merge tag.
Default Layouts
$parts=sidebar is a great option for placing local events into a small column or a sidebar block on one of our templates.
$parts=half-width is an option for use in a two column template.
$parts=full-width is an option for use in a one column or main body region of a template.
Map Options
map will pull in a 400px X 250px map pinpointing the location of an event.
smallmap will pull in a 150px × 75px map pinpointing the location of an event.
mapbox The mapbox option provides a 100px × 100px map pinpointing the location of an event and a link to view a larger map and retrieve directions. This is best combined with other parts options.
![*|LOCAL:EVENTS[$parts=mapbox, $count=1]|*](http://help.mailchimp.com/img/partsmapboxonly.jpg)
![*|LOCAL:EVENTS[$parts=mapbox,title, $count=1]|*](http://help.mailchimp.com/img/mapboxplus.jpg)
Other Parts Options
address will display the address of the event as posted on Eventful.
attend will add in a link to event page on Eventful. From that page, your recipients will be able to RSVP to the event.
location will display the posted location of the event. This is usually a venue name pulled in from the posted event.
date displays the date and time of the event.
desc pulls in a description of the event, as written by the event owner. Some events don't have a desc designation, so in some cases, nothing may be displayed for this tag. Some descriptions are very long, so in those cases, it might be a good idea to eliminate desc from the tag.
share-
share- will place in a link for your subscribers to share this event on twitter or facebook. The following options are available:
share-horizontal - will add side by side both twitter and facebook links at the end of the event listing.
share-vertical - will add both twitter and facebook links at the end of the event listing, one on each line.
share-twitter - will add only a twitter link at the top of the event.
share-facebook - will add only a facebook link at the top of the event.
$count=
Adds in the number of events you'd like to display in your campaign.
Default Settings
If you simply use the merge tag *|LOCAL:EVENTS|* and don't specify settings under each variable, we'll default the variables to the following "factory settings":
$location= is based off the address you provided under list > settings >required email footer content.
$radius= the default radius is 10 miles from the $location.
$categories= if no categories are selected, we'll pull in events from all categories.
$parts= Parts will default to the default sidebar display, if you do not specify which parts you'd like to display.
$count=, We'll pull in a maximum of 4 events, if a number of blog posts is not specified.
Full List of $categories
[music] => Concerts & Tour Dates
[conference] => Conferences & Tradeshows
[learning_education] => Education
[family_fun_kids] => Kids & Family
[festivals_parades] => Festivals
[movies_film] => Film
[food] => Food & Wine
[fundraisers] => Fundraising & Charity
[art] => Art Galleries & Exhibits
[support] => Health & Wellness
[books] => Literary & Books
[attractions] => Museums & Attractions
[community] => Neighborhood
[business] => Business & Networking
[singles_social] => Nightlife & Singles
[schools_alumni] => University & Alumni
[clubs_associations] => Organizations & Meetups
[outdoors_recreation] => Outdoors & Recreation
[performing_arts] => Performing Arts
[animals] => Pets
[politics_activism] => Politics & Activism
[sales] => Sales & Retail
[science] => Science
[religion_spirituality] => Religion & Spirituality
[sports] => Sports
[technology] => Technology
[other] => Other & Miscellaneous